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Guardian Interview: Emma Donoghue

In October, bestselling author of Room Emma Donoghue spoke to the Guardian about literary success and how she got their in the first place.

In October, bestselling author of Room Emma Donoghue spoke to the Guardian about literary success and how she got their in the first place.

As far as Emma Donoghue is concerned, her best days are behind her. Until the age of 40, her literary career had been characterised chiefly by moderation: steady sales, mild misfortunes (a pair of novels that sold in North America but not in the UK or Ireland), a sturdy critical reputation built on books that fossicked odd details from the historical record and sculpted them into smart narratives. Then, in 2010, she published Room – a novel "triggered by" the case of Josef Fritzl, the Austrian man who locked his daughter in a basement for 24 years, raped her repeatedly and fathered her seven children. Overnight, Donoghue was pitched into the stratosphere.